Senior All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Kalyan Banerjee has issued a public ultimatum to party chief Mamata Banerjee, declaring he will quit if the party cannot function without Abhishek Banerjee — triggering a cross-party political storm on Friday, 12 June that has laid bare rare fractures at the very top of West Bengal's ruling party.

The Ultimatum That Shook TMC

Kalyan Banerjee, a four-time MP and one of Mamata Banerjee's most trusted lieutenants, launched an unusually blunt public attack on Abhishek Banerjee, the party's second-in-command. 'It is a great humiliation to me. His arrogant attitude has destroyed the party. He should understand that,' the veteran MP said.

He went further, directly challenging the party leadership: 'Mamata Di has to decide first. She has to decide. If she cannot move the party forward without Abhishek, then I will not be there.' The remarks have intensified speculation about deepening internal discord within a party that has dominated West Bengal politics for over a decade and a half.

BJP Seizes on the Rift

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders were quick to characterise the fallout as terminal for the TMC. Union Minister of State Sukanta Majumdar said internal divisions had grown increasingly visible. 'TMC members, especially MPs, have become increasingly distant from one another, and that is why such incidents are taking place. From the very beginning, the party's senior leadership was never happy with Abhishek Banerjee's sudden emergence as the second most powerful leader in TMC,' he said.

Bihar Minister Ram Kripal Yadav went further, claiming the TMC's existence had effectively come to an end. 'There is deep dissatisfaction among TMC MLAs and MPs, and the main reason for this dissatisfaction is the way Abhishek Banerjee has created unrest. The party has lost support among the public as well as among workers, MLAs and MPs,' he said.

NDA Allies Pile On

Bihar Minister Dilip Jaiswal argued that years of suppressed grievances were now surfacing. 'When Mamata Banerjee's government was firmly in power, whatever Abhishek Banerjee said effectively became the rule. For years, TMC MPs functioned under pressure. Now that they feel able to breathe in open air, many leaders are speaking openly and expressing what they truly think,' he said.

Uttar Pradesh Minister Om Prakash Rajbhar framed the crisis as a broader public verdict against the TMC, saying, 'People now realise that the path taken by TMC was not the right direction. Those who followed that path are now understanding that today there is an NDA government, and the only focus of the NDA is development.'

Opposition Reads It Differently

Not all parties interpreted the episode as a challenge to Mamata Banerjee personally. Samajwadi Party spokesperson Ashutosh Verma drew a distinction between loyalty to the party chief and discontent with her nephew. 'Kalyan Banerjee is a four-time MP and one of Mamata Banerjee's most trusted leaders. He has always stood to ensure that Mamata Banerjee or the party does not suffer any harm. It is clear that no rebel MP has any personal issue with Mamata Banerjee. If there is any issue, it is with Abhishek Banerjee,' Verma said.

Context: A Party Under Strain

For nearly 15 years, Mamata Banerjee and the TMC have been the dominant political force in West Bengal, winning three consecutive Assembly elections and emerging as the single-largest party in four successive Lok Sabha polls. The public confrontation by a figure as senior as Kalyan Banerjee is, by most accounts, without precedent in the party's recent history. This comes amid broader questions about the TMC's internal power structure, particularly the rapid consolidation of influence by Abhishek Banerjee over the past several years.

How Mamata Banerjee responds — and whether she publicly backs, distances, or mediates between the two factions — is expected to define the party's political trajectory in the months ahead.